


Welcome To Valinor

by nathadea (orphan_account)



Category: Pushing Daisies, The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Fourth Age, Gandalf is a Matchmaker, Humor, Pushing Daisies References, Romance, Thranduil's Troubles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-30
Updated: 2016-03-19
Packaged: 2018-04-18 04:07:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4691492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/nathadea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>War is over,  the Middle Earth is a famous tourist destination and adventures are rare these days.<br/>Young Daisy Silentfoot wants to experience an adventure of her own. She finds a mysterious letter from Bilbo Baggins himself which leads her to the Elvenking Thranduil.<br/>Will her arrival change the Elvenking's life forever?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Letters And Royal Troubles

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This story contains Pushing Daisies references and a lot of fluff.  
> I hope you enjoy it!

The war had ended many years ago and whole Middle Earth was finally the nice and peaceful place, the perfect land to live in. But even the ultimate peace had it's flaws. Whilst the old generations were enjoying the calmness and absence of danger, the younger ones were pining for a real adventure.All young men, elves, dwarves and even hobbits loved reading about their ancestors' great adventures and wanted to experience them too.

It was a sunny afternoon in the village of Hobbiton and young Daisy Silentfoot, 30 years, 2 weeks and 5 hours old, was reading. Reading about places, which did not exist anymore, people, who were long time dead and wonderful things she would never see. Sometimes it was enough, but she knew that she needed more.

The times when hobbits were scared of leaving Shire or sometimes even their own village had passed. Modern hobbits liked to stick with the rest of the Middle Earth and loved traveling. Daisy Silentfoot considered herself a very modern hobbit, and so the vision of visiting a faraway destination seemed as a perfect way of spending time to her. But none adventure is complete without a purpose, of course and Daisy was well aware of that. Fortunately, one purpose was waiting for her literally next door.

\---

The house of Daisy and her parents stood only a few feet away from the most famous house in the Shire. It was the Bag End, the former home of Shire's biggest celebrity Bilbo Baggins. After the Baggins family had left Hobbiton, the house became a museum of Bilbo Baggins and his travels and a section of the exhibition was dedicated to his equally well know nephew Frodo.

Daisy liked her home, but the amount of tourists that came to her door and asked whether her family was related to Bilbo was really annoying. However, the owner of the Unexpected Adventure Museum provided a lifelong free tickets for Daisy and her family as an apology for all inconveniences with tourists. Daisy would spend evenings with Pansy Gamgee, owner of the museum and Samwise Gamgee's relative, and the Bag End had become her second home.

That day, like every time, when she did not want to read anymore, she decided to visit her old friend in the Bag End. She knocked on the green door, which was locked no, because the visiting hours had ended for today.

"Daisy? What are you doing here so late?" Pansy, standing in the door, was wearing her nightie and her eyes were still half closed.

"I am so sorry, I didn't realize what time it is. Can I come in? I just want to look at some maps, so you can go back to bed," Daisy said. Pansy let her in, rather hesitantly, and disappeared in the back room, where her bed was.

Daisy passed all the doors with different signs, such as "The Dining Room" on them, until she reached one labeled as "The Study". It was full of pictures and maps and a copy of Bilbo's famous book was layed on the table. Daisy took one of the maps and sat in the chair, which she knew was not antique, so it was allowed to use it. Her finger traced roads and rivers on the map, as she imagined what it would be like to see those places in person. She did not realize when she had fell asleep.

She was woken by a loud thump. A small rock lay on the ground.

"It must have fallen from the shelf," Daisy mumbled to herself. She picked up the rock and examined the floor to see if there was not a scratch.

"Oh no!" she cursed. The board - the original, hundreds of years old board - was broken and there was a very visible crack in it. Daisy tried to fix it but the only result was that the board broke in half and now she was holding a large piece of the ancient wood in her hand.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! Pansy is going to kill me!" She ran her hands through her hair desperately. Pansy could be incredibly stern when it came to the museum. She would not just let this be. Daisy was about to start crying, when she noticed something in the hole in the floor. She plunged her hand in a pulled out a piece of folded paper and a little glass bottle. Her heart started beating faster. This thing was hidden under the floor since… since Bilbo lived had here. Maybe Pansy would not be that angry with her after all. Daisy unfolded the paper carefully. It looked like a letter and the handwriting was very similar to one in Bilbo's original book.

"Oh God," Daisy whispered and began to read.

_Dear Frodo, I hope you are reading this because I told you where I put it. If you did not find it I would be very very displeased. I want you to give this bottle to Samwise. Why? Because he is a curious and reliable young man and he can give it to any elven maiden that might be passing through the Shire._ _Gandalf and I have noticed something about the King of Mirkwood. He is not happy and it definitely does not suit him well. That's why Gandalf came up with an idea. The bottle contains a potion which should help the Elvenking with his troubles. I had to hide this because I can sense something horrible coming. But if you come back to the Bag End again, it will be very nice of you to help with delivering the bottle to the Elvenking. I can't tell you more, I am afraid. But please, do not disappoint me. And do not worry, I am sure you will handle the ring just fine. Be careful! Your uncle Bilbo_

In that very moment Daisy felt that this could be her chance. Nor Frodo, nor Sam lived, but the bottle still could be delivered. She was not exactly an elf but did it really matter?

Daisy had done something very bad that night. She stole a guidebook "There and Back Again - travel like Bilbo Baggins" from the museum and left her sleeping parents just with a note and slightly emptier larder. According to the guidebook, the Elvenking still lived in his underground palace (but did not provide bed and breakfast to the tourists like many other parts of Bilbo's Adventure Path did) and that was all Daisy needed to know. She was going to relieve the king of his troubles.


	2. Where Does The Journey End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy visits the Rivendell Hotel and enters the Elvenking's palace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say thank you for all your kudos and comments. I really appreciate them and I definitely didn't expect to get so many :)

_One of the stone trolls has a vulgar inscription on his backside. The jewels and weapons sold in the troll cave are most definitely fake. The path is crowded with tourists_ , Daisy wrote into her travel diary.  
So far the journey had been incredibly disappointing and she began to wonder whether the Elvenking's halls wouldn't disappoint her even more.  
However, she did not want to abandon her plans now. She was nearing her first destination - Rivendell. The _There And Back Again_ guidebook included some very good reviews on Lord Elrond's hotel and spa and Daisy could not wait to get a nice massage and everything after a long day of walking.  
\---  
Sitting at a long table in the dining room of the Rivendell Hotel, Daisy found herself in a conversation with an elderly man with short beard.  
"Where are you from, miss Silentfoot?" he asked.  
"Hummiton," said Daisy with mouth full of delicious bread.  
"Hummiton? Where's that?"  
"No, sorry, it's Hobbiton, actually."  
"Hobbiton?" The man sounded impressed.  
"Indeed," Daisy nodded.  
"Has anyone said Hobbiton?" a voice resounded from the door. It belonged to a tall elf, who's brown hair was adorned with a silver diadem. His posture was straight and proud and he looked somewhat ancient, though his face did not show any signs of aging. Daisy knew without doubt that it was Lord Elrond himself.  
"I did. It's my hometown, sir," she said proudly.  
"I am pleased to see a hobbit coming right from the village, where it all began. Welcome to the Rivendell Hotel, Spa and Wedding Agency, young lady. Is there anything I could help you with? And why did you decide to pay a visit to our little valley, if I may ask?"  
Daisy felt a little bit uneasy under the attention of Elrond and all guests sitting around the table as well. From the books she had read she knew that no adventurer ever speaks of the true purpose of their adventure. The problem was that she was an incredibly bad liar. That is why she blurted: "I am going to marry Thranduil, the king of the Wood of Greenleaves."  
The shocked expression in Elrond's face made her think of what she had said. The laugh of other guests make here blush blatantly.  
"You will need a lot of luck to do so. Maybe you have heard that King Thranduil isn't exactly a warmhearted person. But in case you succeed, I will be glad to offer you services of our wedding agency," Elrond said and chuckled.  
"Can we just pretend I haven't said that?" Daisy murmured.  
If only hobbits could disappear without magical rings.  
\---  
After being talked into spending a disgustingly huge amount of money on several procedures by Elrond and his assistant Lindir, Daisy decided that it was about time to leave the hospitable area of Rivendell.  
Bilbo's Adventure Path led through the mountains (where Daisy had not stopped to pay another immoderate fee to visit the original "Goblin Town") to the Eagle Travel Agency (with the Eagle Flights deparaturing twice a day, except on Sundays and Wednesdays) and Beorn's One Night Hostel with a horse rental service (again terribly expensive).

When Daisy finally reached the border of the Wood of Greenleaves - former Mirkwood- her purse was empty and her feet hurt.  
When she arrived in front of the gate of the Elvenking's palace, her clothes were dirty from a puddle she had fallen in before, she was thirsty and hungry and not presentable at all.  
There were two elven guards standing on each side of the gate. Daisy approached one of them, trying to stand straight and look as good as possible.  
"I am Daisy Silentfoot and I am here to see the king," she said. Her voice did not sound as firm and serious as she had thought it would. She sounded more like a person who is desperate to eat and sleep.  
"I am sorry, but the king strictly forbid us to let beggars in," said the guard.  
"Excuse me? I am no beggar, I am a hobbit of Hobbiton, I live next door to Bilbo Baggins's house and my family is quite respectable and wealthy. I do not want to beg, I come with a message and a gift for the king. If you won't let me in, I demand to speak with the king right here."  
The guard exchanged a glance with the other, who nodded.  
"You can stay in the antechamber and the king will see you."  
Daisy clapped her hands excitedly. "Thank you! I knew we could settle," she smiled.

The antechamber could be described with one simple word: impressive. Everything was decorated with beautiful forrest-themed centerpieces and there was a huge stuffed elk standing by the door.  
"Oh poor boy. Who put you here, hm?" Daisy whispered and stroked it's belly. She had never seen something as huge as the elk before, not even horses were this big. She wondered, whether the fabulous oliphants were bigger.  
"When the king comes," she said for herself, "what shall I say? King Thranduil, Bilbo Baggins thought… Bilbo Baggins left a message for you. He thought you were in trouble. Are you? I can help you. If you are in trouble, I have something that could help you."  
"You do? I wonder what could it be, lonely tourist. And stop touching Edgar."


	3. What A Wonderful Wine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy explains the purpose of her journey and dines with the king.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry that I haven't uploaded in such a long time. I had a complete lack of good ideas. I even considered abandoning the story but then decided to continue.  
> I hope you'll enjoy it :)

* * *

The first thing that came on Daisy's mind was _"who the hell would call an elk Edgar"_  and shortly after that she slowly turned around to find out. Her gaze was met by a pair of strict-looking pale eyes staring at her from a fairly great height. 

"Excuse me, but who are you?" she asked.  The blonde elf arched one of his thick eyebrows as if he had not understood the question. 

"I didn't know hobbits were this dense. Do I have to wear a crown of gold for you to realize who you are talking to?" His deep voice sounded slightly annoyed. Daisy's rosy cheeks turned pale. 

"Oh no."

  --- 

It is known that even the best of us make complete fools of themselves in front of somebody very important and superior at least once in a lifetime. It usually does not have any serious consequences but sometimes it can make our intentions rather difficult to accomplish. 

A situation of that kind is less embarrassing if the important person in question does not act like they had never seen a dumber person than you. Unfortunately for Daisy Silentfoot, that was exactly how the Great Elvenking acted. 

"I am sorry, Miss Silentfoot, but I find it very difficult to believe that a person… a hobbit of your appearance brings me a message from Bilbo Baggins. I don't understand what is wrong with you, guys, these days. Do all hobbits think they are privileged everywhere, just because one or two of them did something great in the past? And do you realize that Mr Baggins hasn´t been living in the Shire anymore?" Thranduil gave Daisy an arrogant, judging smirk.

She definitely expected this going a little easier. And honestly, she did not care how kingly this king of elves was, she was not going to let him humiliate her. 

"I am well aware of that, sir. I live next door to the Bag End and I know almost everything there is to know about the Baggins family. And for your information, I do not crave privileges, I just came to deliver what was meant to be delivered a long time ago," she said and handed the little bottle with the unknown trouble-solving liquid to the king.

"What is it?" he inspected it suspiciously, as if it could explode in any moment. 

"I am not exactly sure, sir. But I have a letter, maybe you'd like to read it, sir," Daisy pulled out the folded, slightly mud-stained paper. Thranduil read it, frowning, his piercingly blue eyes moving from side to side. 

"So am I supposed to drink this… whatever it is?" he asked. Daisy shrugged.

"I don't know, I found it in the Bag End and it didn't come with further instructions. You can try to drink it, though."

"Foolish hobbit! The elves are immortal but not invulnerable. How do I know that someone isn't trying to poison me? That  _you_ are not trying to poison me? If you say that you don't know what you are giving to me, you don't have to be here anymore. Thank you for your effort and hopefully good intentions, but there is no way I am going to drink this. Not even if Mr Baggins and Gandalf send it to me. Now if you excuse me…" Thranduil forced both the bottle and the letter back into Daisy's little hands and turned to leave. 

But Daisy had not come all this way, spent all the money and suffered all the pain from too long walking for nothing. She practically dragged the king back, earning a questioning look from him. 

"Not so fast, King Thranduil. You can't send me away. You don't want to drink it, well, don't do it then. But I am tired to death and starved. My feet hurt and my clothes are filthy. Please, let me stay one night and I promise that I will leave in the morning. You will never hear about me again."

Thranduil looked like he was considering her request for a second but finally nodded slowly. 

"As you wish. You can stay and dine with me tonight. But you have to keep in mind that I am doing this only once, just because you are such a stubborn little hobbit," he said.  Daisy thanked him over and over for his kindness, while she was coming up with a wonderful, cunning plan how to complete her mission. 

\--- 

After insisting to bring the dinner herself in order to "be useful at least", Daisy was sent to the cellars for some wine. Little did the poor king know what was she really up to (but only for his own good, of course).

The cellar was not guarded, much to Daisy's advantage. Nobody could see her opening the wine bottle first, then the bottle she had failed to give to Thranduil. She smelled it carefully. It reminded her of her favourite honey scones, and pleasantly surprised her. Something smelling so good could not taste bad, could it? 

She did not hesitate and poured the light pinkish liquid into the wine. The king would not notice, she was sure of that. And if he did, by any chance, it would be too late. Daisy could not fail in any way. 

"Here's the wine, sir," she put the bottle on the table, clearly too high for her. There were two shiny silver goblets and plates filled with various fresh-looking vegetables and fruit. 

"Yes, thank you. Please, do sit down," said Thranduil. Daisy struggled to climb up the chair, and eventually had to jump up rather clumsily. She pretended she had overlooked Tranduil's barely visible smirk. 

He poured himself a glassfull of wine. Daisy wondered why he had not called any servants to serve him, but then again, according to Bilbo's book, the king was quite possessive over his wine. He probably knew the best how he liked it. 

"Would you like some?" he asked.

Daisy shook her head, maybe too fiercely.  "No! I mean... I don't really like wine, but thank you for your offer," she murmured, watching Thranduil bring the goblet nearer to his lips. Her heartbeat quickened. What was going to happen? What if it really was a poison? Mr Baggins surely would not kill anybody. But what if the letter had been written by an imposter? What would happen to her if she caused the elvenking's death? Her head was flooded with the worst of scenarios, but it was too late to act. Thranduil had already drank a half of his glass. 

"The wine tastes strange," he said. 

"How so, sir?" Daisy swallowed the piece of strawberry she had put in her mouth to distract herself. She hoped the king would not see her shivering. 

"Like honey. It must be the new wine, from the shelf on the left. Is it not?" 

"Y-yes. It is, sir." 

"I like it. Do you like honey, miss Silentfoot?"

Daisy's face lightened up. "Of course! Honey scones are my favourite. Have you ever tried them, my lord?" 

"I have not, but I am intrigued. I bet they taste wonderful," the king said and then, suddenly, did something he had not done since Daisy came and never, never ever, had done in front of a stranger. He smiled. No arrogant, mocking grin. He smiled quite sweetly and sincerely. 

"Errr…" This gesture left Daisy out of words. _So this is what this thing does? Makes grumpy kings less annoying?_ She thought. If so, nobody could blame her for making their ruler a better person. 

"Is everything to your liking? Do you find the food not fresh enough? I can send Édendîr to bring you a new plate," Thranduil said. There was a definite change in the tone of his voice, which sounded softer now, and the way he addressed Daisy was different too. He almost seemed… caring. 

"Thank you very much but I am quite happy as I am," Daisy replied. 

"Are you sure, sweetheart?" Thranduil asked worriedly. 

Daisy thought she must had misheard. 

Whatever had the potion done, it had not only made Thranduil nice.


	4. The Fate's Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thranduil is getting weirder, and Daisy wishes nothing else but to leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two months. I am terribly sorry for not updating for such a long time. I think that the only person to update after longer periods of time is George R.R. Martin.  
> Anyway, I hope that you won't be disappointed with this chapter and bare with me. Thank you all for reading. Feedback is appreciated like always :)

"Excuse me?" Daisy's reaction and the look of sheer shock on her face brought Thranduil back to earth from whatever strange cloud he had been floating on just  moments before.

"Huh… I am getting rather tired. If you knew how much I've done today, you wouldn't ask me stupid questions and expect me to have lengthy conversations with you. Good night!" With these words he promptly left the room, slamming the door shut. That much for the creepily nice king.  
\---  
Daisy was brought to the dining room for breakfast after a long, sleepless night. She kept imagining thousands of different scenarios of the king dying in agonizing pain or turning into a beastly eight-legged creature. When he entered the room looking as fabulous as ever, she almost dropped the fork she had been restlessly twirling in her fruit salad for the past five minutes.

"Oh dear, I was afraid you were dead!" she said before she could stop herself. She was positive there had to be a highly visible aura of relief and guilt all around her.

"Did I really take that long? Or do I look… dead?" There was obvious dread in Thranduil's handsome face, as he self-consciously ran his fingers through his hair. Daisy arched an eyebrow in confusion. What in the world was he talking about? Was he worried that he did not meet Daisy's expectations? He had seemed rather satisfied with himself yesterday.

"Uhhh… No, you did not take long, nor look dead. I was just worried because you… um… didn't look well yesterday," Daisy stuttered out. She still felt like a horrible liar for slipping Thranduil the potion, but confessing now could equal a suicide.

"Strangely, I have no memories of yesterday night. So I suppose I must have felt quite sick. Do you… do you find the meal enjoyable, Miss Silentfoot?" Thranduil asked with a nervous overtone of his voice.

"Yes, very enjoyable, thank you," Daisy did her best to give him a genuine smile and looked him directly in the eye for the first time since yesterday's dinner. Thranduil got distracted by her glance and nearly tripped over his crimson robe on his graceful way to his chair. His pale cheeks showed a subtle blush when he immediately looked away from his hobbit guest.

He sat down and focused on fixing his clothes and arranging his silverware and plate to his liking. He avoided looking at Daisy the entire time. Daisy took advantage of this awkward silence to dig into her meal, but she still kept an eye on the king and his odd behaviour.

After what felt like hours, Thranduil finally broke the silence: "I was wondering, Miss Silentfoot, that maybe you would like to stay a little bit longer to regain your strength." For some reason, what was supposed to be a question appeared as a proposition. Daisy wasn't left with much time to answer, before Thranduil continued.

"You see, Miss Silentfoot, I cannot get rid of this thought that I acted like an awful host when I almost sent you away after you came to me with such wonderful news. Tell Lord Elrond that I congratulate him on the opening of the spa when you meet him again, will you? I would like to make it up to you."

"Lord Elrond?" Daisy's memory never had been the finest in Shire, but she could swear on good old Bilbo Baggins that she had come with something completely different and had not mentioned anything about Lord Elrond. If the potion had changed nothing else, it sure had given Thranduil an amnesia.

"Yes... I am not actually glad he did it, I am sure you understand. But tell him I am, it helps with all these necessary relations. So, will you stay?"  
What Daisy really wished to say? ' _You're creepy, sir, and it's most definitely my fault and nobody else's. Of course I am not staying._ '

"King Thranduil, as grateful for your offer as I am, I have to decline. My family is expecting me and I cannot let them wait," she said. Thranduil's features visibly crumpled.

"But you must stay, I haven't had a company for such a long time. Lord Celeborn hardly visits me anymore since he is so busy with his sport centre. I can make sure that your family is informed about your stay here. Please?" Daisy, like every Middle Earth's inhabitant, would had never imagined that King Thranduil was capable of something as human as pleading. But she, along with everyone else, had been very wrong.

"I am sorry, I really don't think that's a good i-" she was stopped mid-sentence when a guard ran into the room. Thranduil shot a deadly glance at him.

"What is so urgent that you couldn't bother to knock? he hissed. The guard apologized and bowed deeply.

"It's the orcs, my king," he said breathlessly.

"What?" Thranduil stood up so fast he almost knocked down his glass of wine.

"But that's impossible, they haven't been seen since- How is this possible? What has happened?" he demanded.

"I don't know how it is possible, my King, but we have reports that they have been seen around Beorn's One Night Hostel. There has been some damage, including some fire, and it's strictly forbidden to travel between the Wood of Greenleaves and Rivendell until further notice." The guard's eyes moved to Daisy, who stared back and forth from him to Thranduil, wide-eyed.

"Is there any other way we could get Miss Silentfoot back home? The eagles perhaps?" asked Thranduil.

"The eagles were asked to assist with this orc calamity, so their services are unavailable right now. I don't know about any other safe option for Miss Silentfoot," the guard said.

"Alright, off you go," Thranduil waved him away. There was a barely visible smirk on his lips.

"It seems the fate wants you to stay here, Miss Silentfoot. And so do I."


End file.
